CNBC Investment Committee Members Hold Firm as September Begins

As September started, major Wall Street firms adopted a defensive posture. CNBC's Investment Committee took a different approach. All four of its members intend to keep their positions.

This divergence comes as equities enter the month after logging 27 record closes in 2025. Historically, September is the worst-performing month on the calendar.

Why Wall Street Is Buying Protection

Scott Rubner, who oversees equity and equity derivatives strategy at Citadel Securities and previously worked at Goldman Sachs, highlighted three points in an August 31 note.

• Earnings season is over.

Corporations authorized over $1.1 trillion in buybacks through August. Those purchases will largely pause starting September 12.

• Retail investors also pull back.

According to Rubner's data, dip buying in September is the weakest of any month. Purchases on down days occur at roughly half the normal rate.

• Protection is inexpensive.

The VIX ended August at 14.4, its second-lowest close since December 2025.

“Use strength to reduce some exposure and add inexpensive protection into this event window,” he noted.

Other firms followed suit. JPMorgan's trading desk shifted to neutral, and Wells Fargo turned cautious over concerns that AI spending may have peaked.

Both were significantly more bullish weeks earlier, when JPMorgan raised S&P forecasts amid fading hedging demand.

Why the Committee Is Not Selling

• Joe Terranova, Virtus Investment Partners

Momentum has dropped by double digits this quarter, while quality has gained 1.5%. Terranova believes the market has a landing point, so he is not ready to become bearish.

• Stephanie Link, Hightower

She is not attempting to time the month. Any decline becomes an opportunity to increase positions she has been building. Value has outperformed growth by 14% this year.

• Jason Snipe, Odyssey Capital Advisors

Snipe describes himself as a long-term investor rather than a tactical trader. He adds exposure during soft patches.

• Josh Brown, Ritholtz Wealth Management

Momentum peaked on June 22 and has declined 13.7% since then. Brown argues that rotation has already occurred. Trading based on the calendar only generates taxable gains.

Still, the historical record is milder than the reputation suggests. Since 1950, September has cost the S&P 500 an average of just 0.6%. The month finished higher in 34 of 75 years.

The economy also remains resilient. Job openings held steady at 7.3 million in July, the Labor Department reported Tuesday.

Job openings rose from 7.18m in June to 7.27m in July, but beneath the surface measures of labor churn ticked lower:

Quits rate 2% >> 1.9%
Hires rate 3.4% >> 3.2%
Layoffs rate 1.1% >> 1.0% pic.twitter.com/TO3qeBMJ15

— Liz Thomas (@LizThomasStrat) September 1, 2026

Bitcoin (BTC) faces a similar challenge. BTC traded near $77,130 on Tuesday, down more than 2% over the past 24 hours. Both markets carry a weak September seasonality record.

The trading desks are buying insurance. The committee is waiting for the sale.